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In many states teachers are being attacked by politicians who oppose public education. In many states trans people are being attacked by politicians for, well, who really knows. So imagine you’re a transgender, public school teacher. How hard is that? In this episode we find out from Riley Long, a trans high school teacher in Kansas.

Chances are whatever you know about trans issues in education came from reporters who cover the issue. The best education reporting starts with students and works its way out to larger issues. Few things have complicated education reporting more than trans issues. The reporting is complicated by state lawmakers and school board members who use it as a campaign issue. On this issue, we speak with veteran reporter and editor Barb Shelly who has been a journalist in Kansas City for decades.

With everything else they must deal with…law enforcement, taxes and economic development…state legislators spend an enormous amount of time on transgender issues in education. Why, is the most important question but also, are we done watching endless debates on trans students in statehouses? On this episode, we hear from Missouri state Sen. Greg Razor, a Democrat from Kansas City and the only openly gay member of the state senate.

It’s hard enough being the parent of a middle school student. But now your child comes out as trans and you have to navigate the school district bureaucracy to make sure your child is safe. Add to that, many school board members lean towards anti-trans and that makes parenting even harder. In this episode, we hear from Virginia Franzese from Leawood, Kansas. She has faced all of these problems and more.

There are few education topics more heated than transgender students. Should teachers use preferred pronouns? What restroom should trans kids use? And the question that generates the most heat: should kids be allowed to play sports on the teams they identify with? In this episode, we ask two former school district superintendents how we got here. We hear from Cynthia Lane, former superintendent in the Kansas City, Kansas district and Bill Nicely, former superintendent in the Kearney, Missouri school district.